NHL Player News

Kokko will defend the home crease in Monday's game against the Kings, per Zach Dooley of the Kings' official site.

Kokko will look to follow up his strong performance in Saturday's game against the Flames, which resulted in his first career NHL win. He stopped 26 shots and allowed just one goal, giving him momentum ahead of Monday. The 22-year-old netminder came by the opportunity to start down the stretch with both Philipp Grubauer (lower body) and Joey Deccord (lower body) sidelined. The Kings rank 29th in the NHL with 2.67 goals per game this season.

Heiskanen (lower body) is questionable for Game 1 against the Wild in the first round of the 2026 postseason, per Robert Tiffin of D Magazine on Monday.

Heiskanen has already been ruled out for the remainder of the regular season, so it's a relatively positive update that he might be an option for the start of the playoffs. Roope Hintz (lower body) is also questionable for Game 1 against the Wild, so the Stars have a couple of moving parts heading into their quest to bring the Stanley Cup back to Dallas.

Steel (hip) is questionable to play in Wednesday's road game against the Sabres, per Robert Tiffin of D Magazine.

Steel has begun traveling with the team and it was noted that he has a chance to appear in Wednesday's regular-season finale. The 28-year-old center has 12 goals, 33 points, 82 shots on net, 77 hits and 29 blocked shots across 72 games this season. If Steel ends up missing his 10th consecutive game Wednesday, there's a chance that he's being held out to be at 100 percent ahead of Dallas' first-round matchup against the Wild in the Stanley Cup Playoffs.

Luukkonen will start in Monday's road game against the Blackhawks, per Rachel Lenzi of The Buffalo News.

Luukkonen will look to stay hot in Monday's contest after earning a win in four of his last five starts. Overall, the 27-year-old netminder has a 21-9-3 record, a 2.56 GAA and a .908 save percentage across 34 appearances this season. He's been a big reason why the Sabres currently sit atop the Atlantic Division, and he'll have extra motivation in Monday's contest to make sure they keep two points in hand on the surging Canadiens. Luukkonen will face off against a Blackhawks offense that ranks tied for 31st in the NHL with 2.55 goals per game this season.

Brodin (undisclosed) is not suiting up for Monday's game in St. Louis, Michael Russo of The Athletic reports.

Brodin is probably being rested, as the Wild are locked into the third spot in the Central Division. Minnesota will play in the second half of a back-to-back Tuesday against Anaheim, but it's unclear if Brodin or any of the other team's regulars will suit up for that contest at this time.

Gustafsson-Nyberg (not injury related) is set to make his NHL debut Monday in St. Louis, according to Michael Russo of The Athletic.

Gustafsson-Nyberg will skate on the third pairing next to Matt Kiersted on Monday. The 22-year-old Gustafsson-Nyberg played in 38 games with the University of Connecticut in the NCAA this season, registering 11 helpers and a plus-18 rating. He reported to AHL Iowa after signing an amateur tryout with Minnesota on April 6 and recorded one assist across two appearances.

Spurgeon (rest) will play in Monday's road game against the Blues, per Michael Russo of The Athletic.

Spurgeon is back in Minnesota's lineup after he received a day off Saturday. Overall, the 36-year-old blueliner has six goals, 22 points, 88 shots on net, 81 hits and 136 blocked shots across 78 games this season. With the Wild resting both Quinn Hughes and Brock Faber on Monday, Spurgeon will draw a top-pairing assignment alongside Daemon Hunt.

Hague (upper body) is unavailable for Monday's home matchup versus San Jose, per Brooks Bratten of the Predators' official site.

Hague's last chance to return to the lineup in the regular season will be Thursday versus the Ducks. The left-shot blueliner's injury is seemingly not a minor one, as Monday's matchup has major playoff implications.

Lundkvist (illness) will miss Monday's road matchup against the Maple Leafs, per the NHL Media Site.

Lundkvist will miss his third consecutive game Monday with an illness. Across 51 contests this season, the 25-year-old blueliner has eight assists, 11 points, 46 shots on net, 26 hits and 47 blocked shots. His last chance to return to the Stars' lineup prior to the playoffs is Wednesday's road game in Buffalo.

Talbot will start Monday's road game against the Lightning, per the NHL Media Site.

Talbot will look to earn his first win since March 2 after losing or drawing no result in each of his last six appearances. Overall, the 38-year-old netminder has a 12-9-5 record, a 3.07 GAA and an .888 save percentage across 32 outings this season. With the Red Wings eliminated from postseason contention, Monday's start has the potential to be Talbot's last outing of the season. He'll face off against an elite offense in Tampa Bay, which ranks fourth in the NHL with 3.50 goals per game.